Small-size trampoline

ABSTRACT

A small-size trampoline includes a frame assembly to support a jumping bed at a required height. The frame assembly includes front and rear frames, two side frames, and front and rear transverse bars connected to and between the two side frames. The front and rear frames and the side frames are so shaped that they could be vertically connected together. Each of the front and rear frames and the side frames includes a horizontal main section of a predetermined length, on which two vertical leg sections are formed. When the front and rear frames and the side frames are vertically connected to one another at the leg sections, they together provide an overall height equal to the height required by the jumping bed, and therefore allow the fully disassembled trampoline to have a largely reduced volume for economical packing.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a small-size trampoline, and moreparticularly to a trampoline for small children that has a frameassembly providing enhanced structural strength and enabling largelyreduced volume for economical packing when the trampoline is fullydisassembled.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A trampoline is widely welcomed because it functions not only as anexerciser, but also an amusing game to provide a lot of fun. Trampolinesdeveloped in early stages are structured and dimensioned to produce abouncing height suitable for adults only. For children to enjoy the funof jumping on the trampoline, there are small-size trampolinesparticularly developed for children.

FIG. 1 shows an existing small-size trampoline 10 suitable for children.The small-size trampoline 10 includes a frame assembly consisting offour inverted U-shaped legs 11, 12, 13, and 14, a jumping bed 15 fixedlysupported on a top of the frame assembly, and a rail 16 for childrenprovided to one side of the frame assembly. The four inverted U-shapedlegs 11, 12, 13, and 14 contact with the floor at free ends of theirdownward extended leg sections and have cords 17 wound around theirhorizontal sections to fixedly tie the jumping bed 15 to the frameassembly.

To protect children against accidents while jumping on the jumping bed15, the four legs 11, 12, 13, 14 of the small-size trampoline 10 usuallyhave a height H that is small but high enough to maintain the jumpingbed 15 subjected to a downward force at a safe height from the floor.

Normally, to minimize the volume and cost for packing, storing, andtransporting the small-size trampoline 10, the four legs 11, 12, 13, 14,the jumping bed 15, and the rail 16, which typically includes twocollapsible sections, could be disassembled from one another. That is,the small-size trampoline 10 is shipped with all parts thereof fullydisassembled and packed in a box as small as possible. Consumers areresponsible for the assembling of the small-size trampoline 10 afterthey have purchased the same. However, since the four legs 11, 12, 13,14 must have a sufficient height for children to use the small-sizetrampoline 10 safely, the packing box for the fully disassembledtrampoline 10 would still has a considerably large volume and could notbe reduced any further.

And, since the four legs 11, 12, 13, 14 are in contact with the floor attheir free ends and provide oblique supports at only four corners of thesmall-size trampoline 10, the small-size trampoline 10 is structurallyunstable and tends to move when a child bounces on the jumping bed 15.

To prevent children from accident or injury while bouncing on thejumping bed 15, the horizontal sections of the four legs 11, 12, 13, 14are preferably covered with jacket tubes made of a foamed material. Thejacket tubes are hollow tubes for manually putting on the horizontalsections of the legs 11, 12, 13, and 14 by forcefully pulling themthrough free ends of the leg sections one by one. It is time and laborconsuming to do so.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A primary object of the present invention is to provide a small-sizetrampoline that could be disassembled and packed in a much more flat andvolume-reduced packing box to increase the quantity of trampolines inone shipment and save packing and transporting costs thereof.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a small-sizetrampoline that allows quick covering of a frame assembly thereof withjacket tubes.

To achieve the above and other objects, the small-size trampoline of thepresent invention includes a frame assembly to support a jumping bed ata required height. The frame assembly includes front and rear frames,two side frames, and front and rear transverse bars connected to andbetween the two side frames. The front and rear frames and the sideframes are so shaped that they could be vertically connected together.Each of the front and rear frames and the side frames includes ahorizontal main section of a predetermined length, on which two verticalleg sections are formed. When the front and rear frames and the sideframes are vertically connected to one another at the leg sections, theytogether provide an overall height equal to the height required by thejumping bed.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the front and rearframes and the side frames are U-shaped and inverted U-shaped frames,respectively.

In a most preferred embodiment of the present invention, either the legsections of the front and rear frames or those of the side frames havediameter-reduced free ends adapted to insert into bores at free ends ofother leg sections to be vertically connected thereto.

The leg sections with the diameter-reduced free ends are internallyprovided with an elastically movable ball assembly each, and the otherleg sections are correspondingly provided with through holes to engagewith the ball assemblies.

The front and rear transverse bars and the horizontal main sections ofthe side frames together constitute a four-side frame needed to fixedlysupport the jumping bed on the small-size trampoline, and are coveredwith jacket tubes.

In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, a rail isassembled to a front side of the frame assembly.

In another embodiment of the present invention most ideal for reducingthe collapsed volume thereof, the front and rear frames include twoseparate inverted T-shaped units each, and the side frames are twoinverted U-shaped frames.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The structure and the technical means adopted by the present inventionto achieve the above and other objects can be best understood byreferring to the following detailed description of the preferredembodiments and the accompanying drawings, wherein

FIG. 1 is an assembled perspective view of a conventional small-sizetrampoline;

FIG. 2 is an assembled perspective view of a small-size trampolineaccording to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a frame assembly of thesmall-size trampoline of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 shows the manner of assembling a rail to the frame assembly ofFIG. 3; and

FIG. 5 is an assembled perspective view of a small-size trampolineaccording to another embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Please refer to FIGS. 2 and 3 in which a small-size trampoline accordingto a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown. As shown,the small-size trampoline mainly includes a frame assembly 20 consistingof a front and a rear frame 21, 22, two side frames 23, 24, and a frontand a rear transverse bar 25, 26; and a jumping bed 30 fixedly supportedon a top of the frame assembly 20 in a tensely and elastically stretchedstate.

The front and rear frames 21, 22 and the side frames 23, 24 are soshaped that they could be vertically connected to one another with theside frames 23, 24 located at an upper position. In the illustratedpreferred embodiment, each of the front and the rear frame 21, 22 is aU-shaped frame having a horizontal main section of a predeterminedlength, two ends of which are upward bent to provide two first legsections 211, 212 and 221, 222; and each of the two side frames 23, 24is an inverted U-shaped frame having a horizontal main section of apredetermined length, two ends of which are downward bent to provide twosecond leg sections 231, 232 and 241, 242. The first leg-sections 211,212 and 221, 222 have upward free ends adapted to detachably connect todownward free ends of the second leg sections 231, 231 and 241, 242 (forexample, an upward free end 213 of the first leg section 211 of thefront frame 21 is detachably connected to a downward free end 233 of thesecond leg section 231 of the side frame 23).

In the illustrated preferred embodiment, as an example, the downwardfree end 233 of the second leg section 231 of the side frame 23 isdiameter-reduced for inserting into a bore at the upward free end 213 ofthe first leg section 211 of the front frame 21. An elastically movableball assembly 234 is pre-mounted in the diameter-reduced downward freeend 233 of the second leg section 231, and through holes 214 arecorrespondingly pre-formed on the upward free end 213 of the first legsection 211. When the downward free end 233 is inserted into the upwardfree end 213, the elastically movable ball assembly 234 is initiallyradially inward compressed and then springs into the through holes 214to fixedly locate thereat and thereby quickly connects the second legsection 231 to the first leg section 211. It is understood theabove-described manner of connection is only one of many available ways,and a person of ordinary skill in the art could obviously complete thesame connection in other similar ways.

The front and the rear transverse bar 25, 26 are separately connected attwo ends to positions on the horizontal main sections of the two sideframes 23, 24 near the second leg sections 231, 241 and 232, 242. In theillustrated preferred embodiment, the front and the rear transverse bar25, 26 are connected to the side frames 23, 24 by way of screwing bolts235 through holes 236 formed on the side frames 23, 24 into threadedholes 237 formed at two ends of the transverse bars 25, 26. The frontand the rear transverse bars 25, 26 and the horizontal main sections ofthe two side frames 23, 24 therefore constitute a four-side frame neededto support and stretch the jumping bed 30. As shown in the drawings, thefront and the rear transverse bars 25, 26 and the horizontal mainsections of the two side frames 23, 24 are separately covered withhollow jacket tubes 27.

With the above arrangements, the first leg sections 211, 212 and 221,222 of the front and the rear frame 21, 22 may have a height Hi aboutone half of the height H of the conventional small-size trampoline 10.Similarly, the second leg sections 231, 232 and 241 242 of the two sideframes 23, 24 may have a height H2 about one half of the height H of theconventional small-size trampoline 10. Therefore, an overall height(H1+H2) of the fully assembled front and rear frames 21, 22 and sideframes 23, 24 is close to or equal to the height H normally required tosupport the jumping bed of the small-size trampoline at a safe height.

As can be seen from FIGS. 2 and 4, a rail 90 may be optionally providedto one side of the frame assembly 20 of the small-size trampoline of thepresent invention. The rail 90 may consist of two sections 91, 92connected at inner ends to define a collapsible middle point 93 of therail 90. Moreover, through holes 94 and mounting pads 95 are providednear lower ends of the two sections 91, 92 for bolts 96 to extendtherethrough and thereby connect the rail 90 to, for example, twolateral inner sides of the connected first and second leg sections 211,231 and 212, 241.

Since the frame assembly 20 consists of front and rear frames 21, 22 andside frames 23, 24 that have a height about only one half of that of theconventional small-size trampoline 10, and two straight transverse bars25, 26, the small-size trampoline of the present invention in a fullydisassembled state could be packed in a much more flat and small box forstorage and transportation. For example, the number of packing boxescontaining the fully disassembled small-size trampoline of the presentinvention that could be loaded in the same sized container is increasedby 50% as compared to the conventional small-size trampoline 10.Meanwhile, since the front and the rear frame 21, 22 and the side frames23, 24 have relatively shortened leg sections, and the front and therear transverse bars 25, 26 are straight bars, the jacket tubes 27 couldbe more quickly and conveniently put on these parts to save time andlabor. Moreover, in the illustrated preferred embodiment, it is thehorizontal main sections of the front and rear frames 21, 22 of theframe assembly 20 that contact with the floor. This largely increasesthe structural strength of the whole trampoline to bear force appliedthereon, making the trampoline more stable and reliable for use.

FIG. 5 is an assembled perspective view of a small-size trampolineaccording to a second embodiment of the present invention. The secondembodiment is generally similar to the first preferred embodiment andconsists of two side frames 230, 240, front and rear transverse bars250, 260 connected to and between the side frames 230, 240, a jumpingbed 300, and a rail 900. However, the second embodiment is differentfrom the preferred embodiment in that it has front and rear frames 210,220 that include two separate units each. In the illustrated secondembodiment, each of the units forming the front and rear frames 210, 220is an inverted T-shaped support having an extended horizontal mainsection for contacting with the floor and an upward leg section forconnecting to the side frames 230, 240.

The present invention has been described with some preferred embodimentsthereof and it is understood that many changes and modifications in thedescribed embodiments can be carried out without departing from thescope and the spirit of the invention that is intended to be limitedonly by the appended claims.

1. A small-size trampoline, comprising a frame assembly consisting of afront and a rear frame, two side frames, and a front and a reartransverse bar extended between and connected at two ends topredetermined positions on said two side frames; and a jumping bedfixedly supported on a top of said frame assembly in a tensely andelastically stretched state to locate at a required height; said frontand rear frames and said two side frames being so shaped that they couldbe vertically connected together with said two side frames located at anupper position; each of said front and rear frames including ahorizontal main section of a predetermined length, on which two upwardfirst leg sections are formed; and each of said two side framesincluding a horizontal main section of a predetermined length, on whichtwo downward second leg sections are formed; and said first leg sectionshaving free ends adapted to vertically detachably connect to free endsof said second leg sections to provide an overall height equal to saidheight required by said jumping bed.
 2. The small-size trampoline asclaimed in claim 1, wherein said front and said rear frame are twoU-shaped frames, and said two side frames are two inverted U-shapedframes matching said U-shaped front and rear frames.
 3. The small-sizetrampoline as claimed in claim 1, wherein either said first or saidsecond leg sections have diameter-reduced free ends, while the othersaid second or first leg sections to be connected thereto have free endshaving a bore each; and said diameter-reduced free ends being adapted tovertically insert into said free ends with said bores.
 4. The small-sizetrampoline as claimed in claim 3, wherein each of said diameter-reducedfree ends has an elastically movably ball assembly pre-mounted therein,and each of said free ends with said bores is provided with throughholes corresponding to said ball assembly.
 5. The small-size trampolineas claimed in claim 1, wherein said front and rear transverse bars andsaid horizontal main sections of said two side frames togetherconstitute a four-side frame needed to support and stretch said jumpingbed.
 6. The small-size trampoline as claimed in claim 5, wherein saidfour-side frame are covered with jacket tubes.
 7. The small-sizetrampoline as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a rail assembled toa front side of said frame assembly.
 8. The small-size trampoline asclaimed in claim 1, wherein each of said front and said rear frameincludes two separate inverted T-shaped units, and said two side framesare two inverted U-shaped frames.